NARAL Pro-Choice America President Mini Timmaraju in a new interview said abortion will be a “major motivator” for Democrats, women and “Americans overall” when voters head to the ballot box for November’s midterm elections.
Asked by ABC’s Martha Raddatz if she thinks abortion will be “the issue” in the upcoming midterm elections, Timmaraju said, “This issue is a major motivator not only for Democratic base voters, not only for women but for Americans overall.”
“We have to explain to the American people that we can’t rely on the court anymore to protect our constitutional rights. We have to go to Congress, governors races, attorneys general who enforce these laws,” Timmaraju later added.
She said the current moment “has probably been the most devastating year since pre-1973” for the abortion movement.
The comments come after Politico sent shockwaves throughout the country last week when it published a draft Supreme Court opinion showing a majority of the justices on the bench voted to overturn Roe v. Wade. The court said the document was authentic but noted that it does not reflect the final decision from the court.
Abortion rights advocates, however, are sounding the alarm regarding potential consequences that could ensue if the nearly 50-year precedent were rolled back.
Some Democrats are pointing to the upcoming midterm elections as a time when the party must elect abortion rights advocates to government offices in an effort to protect access to the medical procedure should the court roll overturn Roe.
Asked by Raddatz if abortion should be a litmus test for Democratic candidates, Timmaraju said, “We don’t think that we should accept any more anti-choice Democrats.”
The interview aired on ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday.